St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-06-01
Reports That the National Opera Com.
pany Will Collapse as Soon as New
York Is Reached.
The Backers of the Scheme Getting
Tired of the Continual Demands On
Their Purses.
How the Present Organization Sue
ceeded to the Debt -Burdened
American" Combination.
The Old Boston Ideals Adopt Title
Which Avoids Any Possibility of
Legal Trouble.
Special to the Globe

NEW YORK, May 31.-RumorS have
begun to fly thick and fast again in re-
gard to the instability of the National
Opera company, which is now ON its way
East after playing an engagement in
San Francisco. and it is asserted on good
authority that the organization will be
compelled to go into bankruptcy as soon
as it reaches New York, because its
principal hackers refuse to put up any
more money for its support. To-day in
addition to arguing several appeals in
cases of the chorus girls who have OBJ
tanned judgments against the old COM
pany and are now suing the stocllhOld-
ers of the bankrupt concern, w. w.
Badger, who appears as counsel for the
plaintiffs, says that Mrs. Olivia Bryce,
a former stakeholder of the company,
has put i'll an answer to a suit
brought against her by the chorus
girls for $1,000, the amount of her sub
scription, in which she alleges that the
sum was paid by her to another creditor
OF the concern in satisfaction of a judg-
ment against the company, namely, the
Southern Trust Company of Alabama,
OF which her husband is principal
shareholder. The answer will be at
tackled as frivolous. seeing that the per-
cOidl oulOOl OiiC CltOl Ellis was UcS
before the judgment in question was
obtained against the company. A large
number of other stockholders claim that
they are not liable because they have
paid into the, concern money far beyond
the nominal amount of their Subscrip-
tions in the form of loans, for which
they
HOLD THE CoMPANY's NOTES.
/. "A copy OF the agreement which was
made between the American Opera
company and the National Opera COM
pany at the'tfme the merger of the two
took place is. now given to the public
for the first time. 1t shows beyond a
doubt that the only object was to, ,aban-
don the old company and its debts COM
pletely, merely for the sake of getting
hold of its assets, as was generally SuS-
pected at the time. The disclosure will
doubtless create a sensation. BY this
agreement, which, was signed Nov. 80,
1886, it is provided that III consideration
of the payment of 81, the receipt Of
which is acknowledged by the Amer
lean Opera company, sells to the Ma
tional Opera company all its costumes,
scenery, properties, furniture, books,
music, tools, implements, materials,
goods, chattelS,S property and rights of
every kind, and its good will and right
OF business OF whatsoever description
and al its plants whatsoever. In fur
ther consideration the National COM
pany agrees to pay the sum of S375, ZOO,
and 600 thereof shall be deemed to
have been paid already by the National
Opera company. The remaining $3.50, 900
THE AGREEMENT CONTINUES,
"shall be paid either in cash or in stock
of the National Opera company" at it's
par value, or partly in cash and partly
in stock, in such proportions as said Ma
tional Opera company shall determine,
and said sum may be paid at one time
or at several times, and in several in
stances in lots of not less than 300
each at the option of the said National
Opera company; provided, however,
that the said sum of $3.50, 900, either in
money or stock, or both, shall be COM
pletely paid on or before the 1St day of
December, 1887; thus giving the Ma
tiOnal company credit of one year in
the payment of its stock consideration,
which is, as is well known, valueless
After thus divesting itself of every
shade of its assets on Nov. 8, 1886, the
American Opera company files its an
nual report with the secretary of state
at Albany on Jan. 20, 1887, which is
dated Jan. and sworn to by Edgar
oNoy uttoiuCy anu ICll VI tllC
rectors of the company in question, in
which it is set forth that
THE EXISTING ASSETS
of the American Opera company con-
sisted of a Seven-tenths interest in the
National Opera company, which inter
est is valued at $3.50, 600, and not single
word was said of the agreement of Nov.
80, which has just been referred to, and
which appears in full in the books of
the company. This explains the reason
why the receiver, Thomas NJ. Rigney,
who was appointed as result of
friendly suit brought against the COM
pany by Charles III. Meigs on Feb. II
last never attained any assets, and not
one of the judgments against the COM
pany, aggregating now some S15O.O0O,
have yet been satisfied. 1t is under
stood that the principal creditors in this
city, both against the American and
against the National Opera company, on
the strength of the ageement have pro-
cured attachments against the property
of the organization, which will be served
as soon as its representatives make their
appearance in New York.